I just wrapped up my stay at the W Philadelphia - the FDA who was checking me out put it best when he asked "why would you want to check out?" - this stay was, in most aspects, a WOW experience.
Although I wasn't upgraded on my Mobile Check-In assigned room, I was able to get moved into a Cool Corner King when I physically checked in (suites aren't being sold or used as upgrades yet due to the soft opening status, per the FDA, which is a shame since some of the suites have balconies which have to be amazing). My Cool Corner King was on the 33rd floor facing the corner of Broad and Chestnut (I think this is the best corner in the hotel). While I was on the 2nd lowest hotel floor (W rooms are on floors 32 to 49 - so nice to have a W be on the TOP of a building, rather than below a bunch of condos), the view was absolutely astounding. Even on floor 33, I really felt like I was on top of the world in Center City, and the massive amount of natural light from the floor-to-ceiling windows complimented the dark decor of the room really well (the dark decor also fit well at night). The best part of the room, though, was only discovered at night - the bed. This was easily the
most comfortable bed I have ever been in - the covers were heavy and plush (climate control did really well to cool the room, though, to balance this out), and the mattress and large pillows were just right. I slept incredibly well and spent a large amount of my stay lounging in bed watching YouTube videos on the perfectly eye-level (thanks, low bed) TV with Marriott's latest Internet TV OS. The room had the sink portion of the bathroom right in the entrance, but everything worked - I think the dark frosting on the glass between the shower and room would probably make the shower private enough. The shower was interesting as it wasn't full of pressure, but you got a lot of water out - they were definitely going for peaceful rain with this shower. I spent a whole day thinking the room didn't have a safe until I discovered a hidden drawer beneath the closet that had a safe. No in-room refrigerator, and the minibar drawer was not stocked.
Dolce (the restaurant) is not yet open for breakfast, so the hotel puts out a continental breakfast spread in the lobby (no one was checking, so this was effectively open to all guests) - I was told I could get $20 off room service breakfast, but I didn't use this as I assumed someone would eventually check on the continental (and with delivery fees and service charges, I'm not sure I could have gotten anything for less than $20). I should have opted for the welcome points instead, but I'm definitely not going to complain at this point (and I honestly might get the welcome points anyway). The continental breakfast spread consisted of good coffee, a selection of juices, fruit plates, granola parfaits, a selection of cheese and fruit danishes, mini bear claws, and many flavors of muffins. It worked well as a light breakfast - I quite enjoyed my chocolate chip muffin and parfait.
Service at both check-in and check-out was very friendly. The associates make a point of stepping out to greet you, and everyone asked how to pronounce my last name (and remembered it). There was no weirdness about my 4 PM check-out. I also appreciated the aforementioned humor of the associate checking me out - they were right as I really didn't want to leave. The 7th floor pool and bar were open, but I didn't use them (the pool was heavily shaded by surrounding buildings and was quite cold). I would also avoid the odd-numbered north side rooms (I assume these are the base Wonderful rooms) as they face the Ritz-Carlton Residences tower (which blocks the view) and look to have smaller windows (most rooms are on the full glass south side).
As I loved my time in Philadelphia, I can't wait for my next visit and plan to make another visit to the W for sure.
Here are a couple of pictures (I had a small pool to select from as most pictures contained my reflection - the room was so reflective):
